Incontinence and Autism; An often overlooked symptom

*This post is a paid collaboration with Aeroflow as part of the Chronic Illness Bloggers Network*

My son wasn’t diagnosed with Autism until after he turned five, and looking back there are a lot of things that I recognize now that could have clued me in to the fact that he was dealing with something. One of those things is something that up until recently I had no idea could even be a symptom of Autism and other special needs; incontinence.

I started reading about incontinence in children and when I saw that having a diagnosis like Autism can cause incontinence, I starting thinking about my sons early years. Sure enough, I started remembering all of the times where we had issues with the bathroom, and I just chalked it up to normal potty training behavior.

I remember taking my son to the bathroom, just for him to have an accident 5 minutes later; or immediately upon getting off the potty. I thought it was just harder with boys, but what I didn’t know was that his body – which was already going through something we knew nothing about – was fighting him.

So, we did what I think most parents do during the potty training years; we stuck to a schedule and bought diapers, training pants, and a miniature potty that we placed throughout the house to TRY and get him to go when he felt the urge.

So much money was spent on diapers and training pants, that we could have saved if we had just known what it was we were dealing with. Had we known at the time that he was dealing with Autism and incontinence and that there was help available to us, things might not have been as hard. That is exactly why I am so happy to know that Aeroflow Urology exists; a company that assists parents in getting all of the incontinence products for children with special needs, covered by their insurance or Medicaid, and delivered right to their front door.

Thankfully, while my son does still have Autism (which will never go away) he is no longer dealing with incontinence issues to the point that he requires specific products for it. However, I do know that every single day more parents are dealing with incontinence and trying to find a way to cover the cost. Additionally, they are also looking for a way to help their children cope with incontinence.

I wish I had known everything that I do now, back when it would have made a difference in my son’s life; back when we could have taken all of the frustration out of the equation and dealt with it head-on, and had the help from AeroFlow Urology in getting him the items he needed. If your child is dealing with incontinence, it doesn’t hurt to get them seen by their Dr., then give AeroFlow Urology a call. They can help take some of the frustration and uneasiness out of the equation.